Ice Breaker
Fresh, with plenty of ice, and a lot more flavour than I expected.
- Junmai Ginjo
- 17%
- Over ice
- 500 ml and 1.8 l
- €22.95
Yes
And not only in summer. At €22.95 it is a friendly price for a bottle that does this much, and it is the one I would hand someone who says they do not like sake.
A safe first bottle.
No scores and no stars. One answer, and the reason for it.
How to drink it
- Over ice
- Plenty of ice. It stays fresh as it melts, which is the point of it.
- Anyone who thinks they do not like sake, and anyone who wants a bottle that asks nothing of them.
- A dry white vermouth over ice, with less of the herbs.
- Nothing. I drank it before dinner, as an aperitif.
Why I started here
I needed a first bottle and I picked this one on the name alone. Ice Breaker. It is what the sake does, poured over ice, and it is what I am trying to do with a drink I have circled for years without ever really starting.
It also asks nothing of me. No right glass, no right temperature, no ceremony. You put ice in a tumbler and pour. A bottle that tells you what to do with it is a good place to begin.
Where to get it
- €22.95 for 500 ml
- 1 September 2026
- Seasonal
- May to August in Japan
The full facts, if you want them
- Kinoshita Shuzo
- Kumihama, Kyotango, Kyoto
- Nihonbare, from Shiga
- 60%
- 17%
- sake-tamagawa.com
- MurokaNot charcoal filtered
- NamaUnpasteurised
- GenshuNo water added, so stronger
- The brewery lists 17 to 17.9% alcohol, some importers say 18%. Check the label on your bottle.
- The polishing ratio of 60% comes from importers, not from the brewery page.
- Importers call it junmai ginjo. The brewery page only says genshu.
Where to drink it
All placesNo place in our list pours this one yet. As soon as one does, it shows up here.